Casey Curry (MA '19)
Founder/Director, Casey Can Help Artist Support Agency

Jonathan Kerr (MA '18)
Independent Artist/Small Business Owner

Olivia Miller (MA '09)
Executive Director, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art

Rachel Auerbach, AIA
Mahlum

Stephanie Morales, AIA
Mahlum 

Josh Garhofer
WJE 

Rachel, a project architect with 15 years of professional experience, approaches every project with a fresh perspective, asking difficult questions and arriving at unexpected solutions to help create exciting and well-loved buildings. Her ability to balance constructability and economy with delight and beauty in every project has built a strong rapport with her clients. Rachel holds a Master of Architecture from University of Oregon and a Bachelor of Arts from Oberlin College. She is a registered architect in Oregon and Washington.

Associate AIA and NOMA, past member of the AIA Oregon Board of Directors and an architectural designer at Mahlum Architects, Inc.

Associate at WJE with a degree in MArch from the University of Oregon. 

Kevin Concolino, RA
LPA

Helen Pierce, AIA
LPA

Theresa Maurer, NCIDQ, IIDA
LPA

California-licensed architect with a passion for sustainability and problem-solving. Graduated with a BArch degree from the University of Oregon.
 

Helen Pierce has developed innovative design strategies for community and educational clients across the U.S. for more than 30 years. She believes in the power of design informed by research and the understanding of place. Since the start of her career she has focused on integrated, sustainable solutions including off-grid, net-zero and LEED platinum projects. Helen’s broad range of experience and her collaborative nature facilitates leading complex projects that meet the diverse and demanding needs of clients.

Theresa Maurer graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Interior Architecture and minors in Architecture and Art History in 2004. After college, she spent over 15 years working as an Interior Designer and firm Associate at PIVOT Architecture in Eugene Oregon before making the move down to San Diego. (Finally, more sun!) She currently works at LPA where she is a Senior Project Manager in Interiors specializing in workplace design. Theresa Maurer’s diverse experience throughout the industry spans almost all aspects of design, construction, interior’s and furniture. 

Adi Yakov
LPA

Shikha Subramanian, AIA
Dahlin

Romina A. Rodriguez
Dahlin

Designer at LPA with a degree in BIArc from the University of Oregon. 

A skilled communicator and collaborative project manager, Shikha fosters an environment of cooperation with clients, contractors, and consultants that keeps projects moving forward throughout the production and construction process, completing projects in a timely manner and staying on budget.

Romina A. Rodriguez is a Designer and Drafter II at Dahlin, graduated with a degree in BArch from the University of Oregon. 

Grace McCracken
Hennebery Eddy Architects, Inc.

Grace is an architectural designer in the aviation sector with a variety of skills including concept design, BIM, drafting, and construction administration. Grace has key interests in universal design, trauma-informed work, and design excellence. Grace is a UO graduate with a BArch degree. 

AIA Oregon
Arbor South Architecture
Architectural Resources Group
Bettisworth North
BORA Architecture and Interiors
Boulder Associates Architects
Brooks Running
Carleton Hart Architecture, P.C.
CB Two Architects, LLC
Colliers Engineering & Design – MG2 Architects
CSHQA, Inc.
Dahlin Architecture Planning Interiors
Devcon Construction, Inc.
DLR Group
Engineering Consulting Group
FFA Architecture and Interiors
Gensler
Hart Howerton
Hennebery Eddy Architects
HGE Architects, Inc.
Hoffman Construction
Integrus
JPC Architects

JRJ Architects
LPA Design Studios
Mackenzie
Mahlum Architects
Miller Hull
Mithun
Nystrom Design
Otak, Inc.
Perkins and Will
PIVOT Architecture
Populous
RMW Architecture and Interiors
Rowell Brokaw Architects
SmithGroup
Stantec
Steinberg Hart
Swinterton - Portland
Treanor, INC.
TVA Architects
U.S. Navy
Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.
Woodblock Architecture

Check Events in Handshake for the most up-to-date list of attendees

Tin Le, BFA, Product Design

Craig Robbins, BS, Materials and Product Studies

Mica Russo, BFA, Product Design

Tin Le is a proud University of Oregon alum with a major in Product Design. Currently, Le works as a Senior Product Designer at Microsoft AI, leading the design for Search ​& AI experiences across consumer products with a focus on growth for Bing, Windows, Edge, and Copilot. Before Microsoft, Le worked at Salesforce, designing products that helped businesses work more efficiently at scale.  Le loves giving back to the Duck community by teaching design classes and mentoring students. Le is a lifelong learner who enjoys exploring new technology, trying creative ideas, and making things. Outside of the design world, Le is an avid traveler, a matcha lover, and a foodie.

Craig Robbins is a Senior Product Design Engineer at Smith Optics, in Portland, Oregon. A University of Oregon graduate with a BS in Materials and Product Studies (2018), Craig 
specializes in transforming helmet and goggle concepts into market-leading products through CAD, rapid-prototyping, and technical development. He has led the creation of award-winning helmets such as Forefront 3, Hardline, Nexus, and Summit. As a champion of innovation and universal design, Craig played a pivotal role in Smith’s Imprint program, the world’s first 3D printed custom-fit goggle-recognized by Time as one of the 100 best inventions of 2022.

Mica Russo is a lead color designer in the sport and outdoor industry. While completing her Product Design BFA and Spanish BA, she led the UO’s Design for America chapter and interned for OMSI’s exhibit design team. For the last 10 years, Mica has designed footwear colorways worn by athletes running 100-mile trail races, nurses working hospital night-shifts, Ted Lasso coaching on the football pitch, and neighbors taking morning walks. She uses a creative process grounded in immersion, collaboration and play. Lately, she’s found the best palette inspiration backpacking in the mountains and running on her local trails. 

Samantha Rude, BFA, Product Design

Liz Zarro, BFA, Product Design

Samantha Rude graduated from the University of Oregon in 2023 with a BFA in Product Design and a minor in Sustainable Business. She has spent the past two years at Schoolhouse, a Portland-based home retail company, managing sourcing and product development for their textile and décor categories. In this role, she oversees the product lifecycle from design concept to final delivery. This includes communicating with international vendors, reviewing samples, and meeting quality and cost targets. With a passion for sustainability, Samantha is also able to utilize her position and work with vendors on increasing sustainable methods and certifications. Outside of work, she is studying up on textile design, building ceramics, or adventuring around Oregon. 

Liz Zarro, Product Design BFA ‘15, currently designs performance bags for Nike, Jordan and ACG brands. She began her professional career in 2013 with an internship at Will Leather Goods. She went on to design products as an Independent Designer on categories from accessories to pet gear to tech and more. For eight years, she designed performance outdoor dog products for Bend-based Ruffwear, leading its color, print, and DTC strategy. Liz’s approach is human-centered. She believes product design should uplift and inspire. 

Derek Franklin, MFA, Mason Gross School of Art at Rutgers University

vanessa german 

Jess Perlitz, MFA, Tyler School of Art, BA, Bard College

Derek Franklin is the Anne and John Hauberg Director and Curator of the Douglas F. Memorial Cooley Gallery at Reed College and Founder of SE Cooper Contemporary in Portland, Oregon, while concurrently maintaining his own full-time studio practice. As an artist, Franklin has exhibited his paintings and sculptures for more than twenty years.  On the heels of the pandemic, in 2022, Franklin became Artistic Director of Converge 45, Portland’s citywide Triennial, to produce its third and most promising iteration to date, Social Forms: Art as Global Citizenship, with curator Christian Viveros-Fauné, hosting over sixty artists at seventeen different venues, and attracting over 80,000 viewers to the city. Until recently, Franklin was working alongside renowned curator Lumi Tan on the next edition of Converge 45, Here to You Now, to debut on August 27, 2026.  

vanessa german is poet, performance artist, and sculptor. She defines herself as a “citizen-artist” to contest hegemonic narratives and colonial histories. Her sculptures often evoke power figures to examine class, race, and gender. In her artworks, past and present coalesce through the juxtaposition of materials in an artistic gesture that fosters dialogue and memory and calls for equality and justice. german’s work has been exhibited at The Andy Warhol Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the National Mall in Washington, D.C., Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, McNay Art Museum, and the Carnegie Museum of Art, among others. 

Jess Perlitz makes sculptures, performances, and public art to disrupt established expectations – directing attention to incongruous experiences and the potential for connection alike. Born in Toronto, Canada, she received a BA from Bard College, an MFA from Tyler School of Art, and clown training from the Manitoulin Center for Creation and Performance. She is Associate Professor and Head of Sculpture at Lewis & Clark College, the co-director of the EAR Forest, and recently helped lead Portland’s Monuments & Memorials Project. She is the recipient of several awards, notably from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Oregon Arts Commission Joan Shipley Award, and a Joan Mitchell MFA award. In 2019, she was named a Hallie Ford Fellow. Her project, Chorus, is currently installed at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA, as part of the museum’s ongoing artists installation series.

Nina Pavlich, BFA, Digital Arts

McKenzie Sampson, BFA

Finn Sylwester, BFA, Art and Technology

Nina Pavlich is a software engineer who enjoys solving hard problems and building things that serve and delight. Originally drawn to programming as a creative outlet, Nina quickly became captivated by the powerful way programming was able to turn ideas into real, working tools.  At The New York Times, she works closely with designers, editors, and teams across the newsroom to imagine, test, and build digital tools that support journalists and reach millions of readers. Her work includes helping launch new products like NYT Parenting and NYT Audio, building data tools that supported COVID reporting during the pandemic, and creating newsroom tools that power a more personalized and visually expressive home page.  Nina studied Digital Art at the University of Oregon, where she learned a human-centered, systems-level approach that continues to guide her work today. Away from screens, Nina spends time tinkering, woodworking, and gardening with her family in Portland, Oregon. 

Mckenzie Sampson is a Portland, OR-based creative with a strong identity within the sports and outdoor industry. With over a decade's worth of design experience, Mckenzie currently leads apparel design and art direction for Canyon Bicycles’ apparel division. He balances both Lifestyle gear and performance-driven racewear and has been featured for his work within the Cycling World Tour, notably: Canyon-Sram’s women’s team and Canyon Factory racing.   Graduating from the University of Oregon BFA Program, Mckenzie has gone on to work for the likes of Adidas, Specialized Bicycles, and Canyon Bicycles and continues to expand on his experience through performance materials, technical silhouettes, and a wide range of graphic and print solutions. 

Finn Sylwester is a digital artist from Portland, working in the games industry. His work skews towards the expressive and whimsically dark, guided by an inspiration for turn-of-the-century Nintendo games.  After graduation from the UO’s Art & Technology program in 2021, Sylwester threw himself into the animation world. Through several ad campaigns, animated shorts, concert visuals, and tv pilots, he built a diverse skillset, ultimately painting the way for a professional pivot into game development later on.  In 2023, he signed onto Elsewhere Communities as Art Director for the Hades inspired rogue-like: Elsewhere Core. Over the next two years, he led the team through production of the game’s visual identity, handling concept art, environment design, 3d modeling, texturing, and animation. Following a departure from the company in mid-2025, he joined Human Computer as Principal Artist, continuing to work on the studio’s debut game in the present day.